Northboro man gets 18-month jail term in child porn case

Thursday

Jun 20, 2013 at 8:00 AMJun 20, 2013 at 10:38 PM

By Scott J. Croteau, TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

WORCESTER — A Northboro man and former area tennis instructor was sentenced to 18 months in jail with 60 days to serve in court Thursday after he pleaded guilty to three counts of child pornography possession and one count of disseminating child pornography.

Joshua E. Lundberg, 29, of 19 Cold Harbor Road, Northboro, addressed the court after pleading guilty. He was sentenced to 10 years of probation in the case with the balance of the jail sentence suspended.

"I know what I did not only affected my family, but it affects the whole community around me," Mr. Lundberg told Worcester Superior Court Judge Janet Kenton-Walker. "I just can't express how terrible I feel about what I did."

Assistant District Attorney Tracy Kennedy was concerned that not only did state police investigators find child pornography on Mr. Lundberg's computer, but also a child-sized doll. Investigators also learned he had exposed himself to a 20-month-old child.

"The Commonwealth is concerned that the defendant is taking this sexual interest to the next level due to the doll, the size and stature of a toddler, that was found in his possession and appears to be intended for sexual purposes and his admission that he exposed himself to a 20-month-old child," Ms. Kennedy said.

Ms. Kennedy argued for a 3-to-4-year prison sentence with five years of supervised release. She said the images found in the case were graphic and of children involved in various sex acts. Some of those children were ages 4 to 6, authorities said.

During probation, Mr. Lundberg is required to register as a sex offender, have no unsupervised contact with children under 16, refrain from drug use and attend different programs. Officials said he has no prior criminal record.

State police investigators and Northboro police searched Mr. Lundberg's family home with a warrant Feb. 2, 2012, as part of a child pornography investigation. Mr. Lundberg admitted to investigators he knew what he was doing was illegal. Authorities found he was sharing images of child pornography.

"It wasn't so much that he was waiting for them (police) that day, but he was certainly waiting for them," defense lawyer Louis P. Aloise said. "He now realizes that this is not a victimless crime."

Mr. Lundberg had various images and videos of young children involved in sex acts. Investigators found that his laptops had searches for and had downloaded the illegal images and videos, the prosecutor said.

Mr. Aloise said his client has learning disabilities, diagnosed at a young age, and those disabilities caused him to leave one college. After that, Mr. Lundberg immersed himself into computers and began using marijuana regularly. Mr. Lundberg also suffers from depression, his lawyer said.

Mr. Lundberg played what his lawyer called an "addictive" video game sometimes for 24 hours and starting viewing child pornography. The marijuana also played a part in his client's decision making, Mr. Aloise said.

At the time of his arrest, Mr. Lundberg was a tennis instructor at the Westboro Tennis & Swim Club. He had plans to continue attending classes at Worcester State University, according to his lawyer.